Aug 2026· Philosophy of Management· 0 citations· 28 references
TL;DR
This study argues that Digital Sustainability must be normatively and ontologically subordinated to EES due to the inherent reliance of digital infrastructures on natural ecosystems, and proposes a balanced governance strategy that balances precautionary and proactionary approaches.
Abstract
This study is a conceptual-theoretical investigation that employs a transdisciplinary philosophical lens to examine the relationship between Digital Sustainability (DS) and Eco-Environmental Sustainability (EES). Using epistemic, metaphysical, ontological, and normative reasoning, we argue that DS must be normatively and ontologically subordinated to EES due to the inherent reliance of digital infrastructures on natural ecosystems. The paper advances an original normative–ontological framework that clarifies why DS can only be normatively legitimate when positioned within the ecological boundaries defined by EES. Our analysis establishes that DS must be embedded within EES because digital infrastructures depend fundamentally on ecosystemic energy, material resources, and biophysical stability. For managers and policymakers, this subordination implies that governance frameworks, incentives, and technology standards are only legitimate when they reinforce eco-environmental resilience. We propose a balanced governance strategy that balances precautionary and proactionary approaches, sets eco-performance thresholds for digital rollouts, and incentivizes interoperability, modularity, and energy efficiency. Further investigation is warranted to examine the responsible management implications of DS as artificial intelligence (AI) advances and as artificial general intelligence (AGI) and artificial superintelligence (ASI) potentially emerge, developments that could substantially intensify environmental and ethical challenges amid accelerating climate and environmental crises.
This conceptual paper examines how organisations can operationalise long-term value creation under ecological constraints. While sustainability frameworks have broadened value creation beyond shareholder interests, they often assume that economic, social, and ecological value can be balanced or optimised simultaneously. From an ecological economics perspective, this is problematic, as economic activity is constrained by ecological systems. Building on ecological economics, the paper develops a hierarchical understanding of value creation in which ecological value constitutes a necessary condition for social and economic value. Accordingly, stakeholder-oriented value creation and sustainability performance are reconceptualised as condition-bound rather than additive processes. The paper introduces Integral Sustainability Performance (ISP) as a conceptual construct that embeds ecological constraints across organisational layers of values, culture, strategy, governance, and business models. ISP links macro-level ecological constraints to organisational processes and provides a basis for operationalizing sustainability performance within ecological limits.
Bauke Feenstra, L. Rijsdijk, Egbert Dommerholt· Journal of Sustainability· 0 citations
(English) Sustainability and circular economy transitions in contemporary socio-environmental systems are increasingly challenged by complexity, uncertainty, and strong interdependencies between natural resources, infrastructures, and governance structures. Traditional sectoral and indicator-based assessment approaches have proven insufficient to capture these interactions, often overlooking systemic trade-offs, emergent behaviors, and context-specific constraints. In response to these limitations, this doctoral thesis develops, applies, and validates integrated, participatory, and adaptive assessment frameworks for sustainability and circularity, grounded in systems thinking and the Water–Energy–Food–Ecosystems (WEFE) Nexus.
The thesis is structured as a compendium as follows. The first chapter is the introduction, including the research context of the main concepts, the background and rationale, and the design, starting with the research questions, hypothesis, identification of the research gap, the research lines and objectives. The second chapter, dives into the state of the art of the main concepts, presenting the bibliometric analysis as well as the institutional context and the projects that provided the scene for the applied research. The third chapter is dedicated to the methodology, starting with the global methodology framework and then focusing on the WEFE Nexus and integrated assessment. The fourth chapter, proposes an integrated multi-criteria framework for assessing sustainability and circular economy performance in public water utilities operating in Mediterranean contexts, combining environmental footprints, ecosystem services, governance, and operational performance within a decision-oriented analytical structure. The fifth chapter applies an artificial intelligence (AI)–enabled WEFE Nexus assessment tool to evaluate circular bioeconomy (specifically biochar and agroforestry) highlighting trade-offs, synergies, and context-dependent outcomes under future scenarios in a dynamic way. The sixth chapter consolidates these insights into a transferable methodological framework for participatory, AI-enabled circularity assessment across heterogeneous socio-environmental systems. The seventh chapter is focused on the discussion of the theoretical and the applied research, specifically to proof whether circularity was implemented as a static set of material loops, or if enough evidence is found that circularity was implemented as an emergent system property, resulting from interactions between resource systems, ecosystems, institutions, and stakeholder values in the frame of this thesis. The eighth and final chapter gathers conclusions to measure the degree in which the methodology and its derived applications help integrate multi-criteria decision analysis, participatory processes, artificial intelligence, and digital twin concepts to support transparent, context appropriate and adaptive sustainability assessment. Finally, limitations and future research lines are drawn to set some basic principles for replication and adaptation of the analysis tool in different contexts.
Overall, the thesis aims to contribute in advancing the state of the art in sustainability science by operationalizing the WEFE Nexus through AI-enabled and participatory assessment frameworks, bridging the gap between conceptual integration and practical support for decision-making. The obtained results, demonstrate that systemic, adaptive, and governance-aware approaches are essential for informing transitions towards sustainability and circular economy in complex socio-environmental systems with resource constraints
(Català) La sostenibilitat i les transicions de l'economia circular en els sistemes socioambientals contemporanis es troben cada vegada més desafiades per la complexitat, la incertesa i les fortes interdependències entre els recursos naturals, les infraestructures i les estructures de governança. Els enfocaments tradicionals, d'avaluació sectorial basada en indicadors, han demostrat ser insuficients per capturar aquestes interaccions, sovint ignorant les compensacions sistèmiques, els comportaments emergents i les restriccions específiques del context. En resposta a aquestes limitacions, la present tesi doctoral desenvolupa, aplica i valida marcs d'avaluació integrats, participatius i adaptatius per a la sostenibilitat i la circularitat, basats en el pensament de sistemes i el Nexe Aigua-Energia-Alimentació-Ecosistemes.
La tesi s'estructura com a compendi de la manera següent. El primer capítol és la introducció, a on es presenta el context de recerca dels principals conceptes, els antecedents i fonaments de la recerca, axí com el disseny, que comença amb les preguntes i hipòtesis de la recerca, la identificació de la bretxa de recerca, així com les línies i objectius. El segon capítol, s’endinsa en l’estat de l’art dels principals conceptes, presentant l’anàlisi bibliomètric a més del contexte institucional i els projectes que han proporcionat l’escenari per la part aplicada de la recerca. El tercer capítol, es dedica a la metodolgia, començant amb el marc metodològic global per posteriorment enfocar-se en el WEFE Nexus i l’avaluació integrada. El quart capítol, proposa un marc multicriteri integrat per avaluar el rendiment de la sostenibilitat i l'economia circular en els serveis públics d'aigua que operen en contextos mediterranis, combinant petjades ambientals, serveis ecosistèmics, governança i rendiment operatiu dins d'una estructura analítica orientada a la presa de decisions. El cinqué capítol, aplica una eina d'avaluació del WEFE Nexus activada per la intel·ligència artificial (IA) a les solucions de bioeconomia circular (específicament al biochar i les pràctiques agroforestales), les quals destaquen les compensacions, les sinergies i els resultats dependents del context i la seva dinàmica en escenaris futurs. El sisè capítol, consolida aquestes idees en un marc metodològic transferible per a l'avaluació de la circularitat participativa i activada per IA mitjançant sistemes socioambientals heterogenis. El capítol setè, es centra en la discussió dels resultats obtinguts a través de la recerca teòrica i aplicada, específicament per demostrar si la circularitat s'ha implementat com un conjunt estàtic de cicles de materials, o si s’ha assolit la seva implementació com una propietat de sistema emergent resultant de les interaccions entre els sistemes de recursos, els ecosistemes, les institucions i els valors dels grups d'interès, dins del marc de la present tesis. El capítol vuitè i últim, recull les conclusions per tal de mesurar el grau en què la metodologia i les seves aplicacions, ajuden a integrar l'anàlisi de decisions multi-criteri, els processos participatius, la intel·ligència artificial i els conceptes bessons digitals per donar suport a una avaluació de sostenibilitat transparent, adequada al context i adaptativa.
Finalment, es dibuixen limitacions i futures línies de recerca per establir alguns principis bàsics per a la replicació i adaptació de l'eina d'anàlisi en altres contextes.
En general, la tesi pretén contribuir a l'avanç de l'estat de l'art en la ciència de la sostenibilitat mitjançant l'operativitat del WEFE Nexus a través de marcs d'avaluació participatius i habilitats per la IA, reduint la bretxa entre la integració conceptual i el suport pràctic a la pressa de decisións.
(Español) La sostenibilidad y las transiciones de la economía circular en los sistemas socioambientales contemporáneos, encuentran cada vez más desafíos a causa de la complejidad, la incertidumbre y las fuertes interdependencias entre los recursos naturales, las infraestructuras y las estructuras de gobernanza. Los enfoques tradicionales, de evaluación sectorial basada en indicadores, han demostrado ser insuficientes para capturar estas interacciones, a menudo ignorando las compensaciones sistémicas, los comportamientos emergentes y las restricciones específicas del contexto. En respuesta a estas limitaciones, la presente tesis doctoral desarrolla, aplica y valida marcos de evaluación integrados, participativos y adaptativos para la sostenibilidad y la circularidad, basados en el pensamiento sistémico y el Nexo Agua-Energía-Alimentación-Ecosistemas.
La tesis se estructura como un compendio de la manera siguiente. El primer capítulo es la introducción, donde se presenta el contexto de investigación de los principales conceptos, los antecedentes y fundamentos, así como el diseño de la investigación, comenzando por las preguntas e hipótesis, la identificación de la brecha de investigación, así como las líneas y objetivos. El segundo capítulo, profundiza en el estado del arte de los principales conceptos, presentando el análisis biliométrico y el contexto institucional y proyectos que han proposcionado el escenario para la parte aplicada de la investigación. El tercer capítulo, se dedica a la metodología, empezando por el marco metodológico global para enfocarse posteriormente en el WEFE Nexus y la evaluación integrada. El cuarto capítulo, propone un marco multicriterio integrado para evaluar el rendimiento de la sostenibilidad y la economía circular en los servicios públicos de agua que operan en contextos mediterráneos, combinando huellas ambientales, servicios ecosistémicos, gobernanza y rendimiento operativo dentro de una estructura analítica orientada a la toma de decisiones. El quinto capítulo, aplica una herramienta de evaluación del WEFE Nexus activada por la inteligencia artificial (IA) a las soluciones de bioeconomia circular (específicamente, al biochar y las prácticas agroforestales), las cuales destacan las compensaciones, las sinergias y los resultados dependientes del contexto y su dinámica en escenarios futuros. El sexto capítulo, consolida estas ideas en un marco metodológico transferible para la evaluación de la circularidad participativa y activada por IA mediante sistemas socioambientales heterogéneo
Environmental degradation is often discussed as a technical challenge—one that can be solved through better technologies, stricter regulations, or more efficient resource management. Yet despite decades of scientific advances and policy interventions, ecological decline continues to accelerate. This persistent gap raises an uncomfortable but increasingly unavoidable question: are environmental crises fundamentally ethical problems as much as technical ones? This review explores the philosophical foundations of ethics-led environmentalism and examines how moral reasoning can contribute to more durable forms of ecological governance. Drawing upon scholarship in environmental ethics, environmental justice, ecological philosophy, sustainability studies, and environmental law, the review synthesizes diverse perspectives including ecocentrism, biocentrism, stewardship ethics, intergenerational justice, Earth Jurisprudence, and culturally grounded traditions such as Dharma, Ubuntu, and the Chinese philosophy of human–nature harmony. The analysis further evaluates distributive, procedural, and recognition-based dimensions of environmental justice and investigates illustrative cases from Europe, North America, India, and China. Across these contexts, a recurring pattern emerges: environmental initiatives tend to achieve greater legitimacy and longevity when ethical commitments are translated into institutional practice. The review also considers economic, political, and cultural barriers that complicate the implementation of ethics-led approaches. Ultimately, it argues that environmental protection cannot rely solely on technical expertise and regulatory containment. A genuinely sustainable future requires ecological governance grounded in moral responsibility, social justice, and a renewed understanding of humanity’s relationship with the natural world.
Unknown authors· Energy, Environment, and Eco...· 0 citations
Sustainable development has traditionally been understood as a framework balancing environmental, economic and social objectives. However, accelerating climate change, geopolitical instability, technological disruption and growing systemic risks challenge the conditions under which these objectives can be achieved. Despite expanding research on sustainability, resilience and security, their interrelationships remain fragmented across disciplinary perspectives. This article examines how the relationship between sustainable development and security has evolved and analyzes how existing discussions on sustainable security can be brought together into a more coherent analytical framework. The study applies qualitative document analysis, comparative analysis, thematic analysis and analytical synthesis of the academic literature, international policy documents and institutional reports. The analysis indicates that progress towards sustainable development depends to a substantial extent on the resilience of environmental, economic, societal and institutional systems. Rather than representing a separate policy field, sustainable security provides an integrative perspective that explains how these dimensions interact under conditions of systemic uncertainty. Building on existing research in sustainability, security, resilience and governance, the article develops an Integrated Sustainable Security Framework that brings these dimensions into a single analytical structure suitable for examining their mutual relationships. Its main contribution lies in integrating existing perspectives into an analytically consistent framework that may support future empirical and interdisciplinary research on the sustainability–security nexus.
Radoslav Ivančík, Jiří Dušek· Sustainability· 0 citations
The concept of sustainability––which has become central to today’s legal and economic systems–– is being transformed from a broad social, ecological and business-related concern into a binding legal principle that concerns and affects both public and private law. In other words, sustainability is also being transformed into a binding legal paradigm in the European Union (EU) and beyond, rather than merely a corporate aspiration. However, despite its established status and ongoing efforts, the process of integrating this relatively new concept into contract law systems remains superficial and fragmented. Sustainability obligations are still treated as a fragmented structure that cannot be clearly defined in contracts; they are mostly integrated into contracts as voluntary commitments and independent provisions, which are binding only on the contracting parties. This study argues that achieving sustainability in the literal sense is only possible through a comprehensive contractual approach that embeds and integrates environmental, social, and governance (ESG) elements into the entirety of the contractual relationship. The examination of regulations such as the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) and the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) reveals that the sustainability obligations imposed on companies are inevitably transferred to private law relationships, particularly global supply chain contracts. A holistic approach could ensure that the sustainability obligations provisions may embody as binding provisions that are supported not only symbolically but also by measurable standards, audits, accountability mechanisms, and transparency.
Güzide İrem Can· Pécs journal of internationa...· 0 citations
As nuclear energy re-emerges as a key component of global decarbonization, its long-term sustainability increasingly depends on institutional legitimacy alongside technical performance. Drawing on institutional theory, sociotechnical systems theory, and energy justice scholarship, this study conceptualizes regulatory compliance as a governance-mediated outcome shaped by trust, equity, transparency, and inclusion (TETI). Building on the Q-NPT (Qudrat-Ullah Nuclear Peace and Trust) framework, a sequential explanatory mixed-method design develops a composite TETI Governance Index using structured coding of regulatory documents, international peer-review findings, and participatory governance practices across ten advanced and emerging nuclear programs. The index enables comparative assessment of governance quality through standardized indicators and aggregation of the four governance dimensions. Comparative analysis across the ten programs reveals systematic governance differences between advanced and emerging nuclear systems, with more institutionally mature programs generally exhibiting higher TETI scores and stronger regulatory compliance. Results suggest that governance systems characterized by greater transparency, equity, stakeholder inclusion, and institutional trust are associated with stronger regulatory compliance and institutional resilience. Regression analysis indicates a positive relationship between the TETI Governance Index and compliance performance, although the small comparative sample and proxy measures preclude causal inference. By reframing regulatory compliance as a governance-mediated sociotechnical outcome, this study advances a theoretically grounded framework for strengthening safe, equitable, and sustainable civilian nuclear energy governance.